The BIG news is that it directly accesses groundspeak through the new API interface. What that means is that GSAK now knows how to interact with the geocaching.com database directly. You can download your PQs DIRECTLY into GSAK, and do things like using GSAK to filters to create a bookmark list on gc.com. Very cool stuff.

During the beta, GSAK 8 will run on your existing GSAK 7 license (you may have to look it up so you can enter it into GSAK . However, Clyde has said that once 8 is in production, it will probably be a paid version that you'll have to buy a license for.

That's great for those that push the envelope with GSAK, but having to pay again for many people is just not going to make sense. Many cachers that I know of don't even know how to set up a simple filter. I wouldn't even know how to explain the advantages of upgrading. I sure hope version 7.x will continue to work (as I'm sure it will, unless Groundspeak changes things on their end)_________________Alcohol & calculus don't mix. Don't drink & deriv

Clyde hasn't given many specifics, but he has said that it will not be a big price bump... So I take that as meaning plan on it to be in that 25-30 range.

He's also said that people with existing 7.x registrations will get a discount as well, so it may be even less. I have not heard any mention of how long 7.7 would still be viable. I suspect the macros that people use for logging and GPS loading will be the problem, those developers will move on to 8 and 7 will slowly become strangled by aging macros.

The valueof it all depends on how you cache and how you manage data. If you're like me and you want to consolidate quite a few PQs into one big data set to load into your GPS, then GSAK is a goldmine. I am highly mobile and so I have about 11,000 caches currently in my Nuvi and 60csx.

For me, the calculus is sorta like this... My GPSr + GC membership budget has worked out to be about $300/year. If I pay another $7 per year ($25 every 3-4 years) for a tool that increaes the value of my $300/year investment by 2x, then it is an unbelievable investment for me.

Sadly, we have created an environment now where for perhaps 20% of the US population, even that $6 is hard, or impossible, and it makes me count my own blessings all the more.

Hmmm, that means that I spend about 30 cents per cache I find just for the data, not including gas, the ocassional prednisone, upscale hiking boots, and all the 52oz diet cokes I drink while out caching. Interesting topic for another thread.

I've been tinkering with the GSAK beta too, and I'm kind of excited by it. The upgrade will probably be cheaper than the gas for a trip outstate, and if buying it can make those trips more effective, I'm going to do it.

Though it is ironic that we rationalized our obsession with this little hobby because it seemed like an inexpensive way to get outside more.

Now that Groundspeak's API is "in the wild" and being exploited by better developers, there is a lot to be excited about. Now if only I could somehow stuff my smartphone inside my 60CSx...

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

I believe it was a paid upgrade from 6 to 7 as well._________________Hmm...

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

Yeh, typically a "lifetime license" means that you make a one-time purchase and can use that major version of the SW forever, including free patches and minor version upgrades. This would be true for the vast majority of commercial software, like windows, office, acrobat, etc. In fact, by definition, the database redesign in 7.7 would have been a major version release in ANY other commercial package, and Clyde "absorbed" the entire cost of that work by letting it be a free minor upgrade.

I am going to sound partisan here, but I have no connection at all to Clyde, CWE, or GSAK and do not benefit in any way from saying this... Clyde has done more for the technical side of geocaching than almost anyone in the world. Compare the quality of feature advancement in GSAK to the quality of feature advancement at groundspeak. Compare the deep, personal support you get directly from Clyde (he responds on the forums daily and usually has bugs fixed within a few hours or a day of being reported) to ANY other commercial software developer in the history of software. His is a remarkable accomplishment and commitment, unmatched in the industry.

Writing and supporting GSAK is his full time gig, and while I bet he does OK, I'd also bet he's not getting wealthy either. I think there is a perception that he does something else for a living and this is his pet "spending money" project on the side that "ought" to be nearly free like a game on the android might be. But GSAK is a true fully supported commercial software product, and it's how he makes his living.

Last edited by Sky King 36 on Sun Aug 21, 2011 11:45 am; edited 1 time in total

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

From the site: "Please note: Registration is a one off fee. Once paid your current version of GSAK is registered for life. Also, all updates to the current major version are free. For example, if you paid for a version 7 registration, version 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc will all be free. Version 8 may still be a free upgrade, but I reserve the right to charge an upgrade fee."_________________You may only be young once...but I will be immature forever!!!

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

From the site: "Please note: Registration is a one off fee. Once paid your current version of GSAK is registered for life. Also, all updates to the current major version are free. For example, if you paid for a version 7 registration, version 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc will all be free. Version 8 may still be a free upgrade, but I reserve the right to charge an upgrade fee."

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

From the site: "Please note: Registration is a one off fee. Once paid your current version of GSAK is registered for life. Also, all updates to the current major version are free. For example, if you paid for a version 7 registration, version 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc will all be free. Version 8 may still be a free upgrade, but I reserve the right to charge an upgrade fee."

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

From the site: "Please note: Registration is a one off fee. Once paid your current version of GSAK is registered for life. Also, all updates to the current major version are free. For example, if you paid for a version 7 registration, version 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc will all be free. Version 8 may still be a free upgrade, but I reserve the right to charge an upgrade fee."

I always thought GSAK was a lifetime license. As a software developer I understand the need to cover what equates to hundreds of hours worth of work. But as a cheapskate consumer, I think the new upgrade fee stinks.

From the site: "Please note: Registration is a one off fee. Once paid your current version of GSAK is registered for life. Also, all updates to the current major version are free. For example, if you paid for a version 7 registration, version 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc will all be free. Version 8 may still be a free upgrade, but I reserve the right to charge an upgrade fee."

Yeah yeah, don't beat me up over it. Already clarified.

lol...

I only quoted your quote as others have had the same question...yours was just really clear and easy to read!!!_________________You may only be young once...but I will be immature forever!!!